Friends of Jim and Traci Williams of West Akron are busy trying to find ways to help the couple whose home was severely damaged in a massive July rainstorm that destroyed two basement walls.
“Unable to return home, the Williamses had to rely on the kindness of family and friends for just about everything,” wrote Michelle Huber, marketing/public relations coordinator for St. Sebastian Parish School. “The total cost to get their house back to normal is approaching $50,000 with insurance only covering a small portion.”
A fundraiser has been organized for 7 p.m. Aug. 22 at the Beer Haus, 1824 Merriman Road, Akron, with a 50/50 raffle and a silent auction. A Jim and Traci Williams Benevolent Fund has been set up at KeyBank’s Tallmadge branch. For more information, please visit www.helpjimandtraci.com.
Huber wrote: “Everyone at St. Sebastian Parish feels very close to the Williamses because of all they have done for our parish. Jim served as president of the Athletic Booster Club for three years and Traci recently served as president of our Sanctuary Society and Volleyball Commission for our sports program.”
Kayaking for a cause
To honor his dear friend’s family, Akron’s Michael A. Rejkowski is embarking Sunday on a rather unusual fundraiser — paddling his kayak across Lake Erie from Point Pelee, Ontario, to Lakeside, Ohio, via Pelee and Kelleys islands. He estimates the journey to be about 34 miles and he will roughly take 12 to 15 hours to complete it, ending at a state marina in Danbury Township, which is just west of Lakeside.
Rejkowski is paddling for Melissa V. Morehart, who died of a glioblastoma multiforma brain tumor May 2 at age 35, leaving behind a husband and three children all under 10. “Melissa was an educator and a math tutor and last November during her cancer treatment her employer went bankrupt and dissolved, leaving the family with an overwhelming amount of medical debt,” he said.
All donations can be sent to Melissa Morehart Memorial Paddle at www.GiveForward.com or the Melissa Morehart Fund c/o Ohio Savings Bank, One N. Hawkins Ave., Akron, OH 44313.
Fundraiser for family
Scott Talbot Salonspa, which has shown a big heart when it comes to helping children, is hosting a benefit to help Sam Rutigliano Jr., 18, who has been battling Crohn’s disease since he was 10.
“He’s had two major surgeries already and has been admitted to the hospital so many times that he has been robbed of not only his teen life but much of his childhood, too,” wrote Shelly Talbot, co-owner of the salon’s Akron and Green locations.
“When that hospital could no longer figure out why he’s just not getting well, he was sent to the Cleveland Clinic for further treatment. … He is currently getting a procedure called an IVIG, intravenous immunoglobulin, for patients with steroid-resistant Crohn’s. He has had one procedure already and has two more to do. … He just graduated in culinary arts from Portage Lakes Career Center/Green High School and wants to go to college for a business degree.”
The Aug. 25 fundraiser — a poker run with food, drinks, raffles, other prizes and live bands (Applesauce and Everhard) — benefits Sam and his family, who are struggling to make ends meet. The hours are 2 to 7 p.m. Sunday, at Jerzees Sports Grille, 2531 Fulton Road NW, Canton. Tickets are $25 for a rider and $15 for passengers. For more information, please call 330-896-3476.
A Samuel R. Rutigliano fund has been set up at Huntington Bank (any branch).
Friends Night
Friends of Ronald McDonald House of Akron will host its inaugural “Friends Night” fundraiser at 6 p.m. Sept. 5 at Gervasi Vineyards, 1700 55th St. NE, Canton.
The $100 ticket includes hors d’oeuvres, drinks and dessert, a silent auction and a chance to learn more about the Ronald McDonald House, a home away from home for families with seriously ill children who are patients at Akron Children’s Hospital, which is seeking to expand. Families pay a nominal fee to stay at the house and have access to laundry facilities and the kitchen. The house served over 14,000 individuals in 2012. Reservations are a must for the fundraiser; deadline is Tuesday. Please call 330-253-5400.
Back-to-school store
Bravo to Akron’s Urban Vision (UV) and what volunteer Cindy Berry called its “amazing back-to-school store.”
Some 183 inner-city youth and those from immigrant families living in the North Hill community were invited to shop with their “UV Dollars” for school supplies, including backpacks and household items (lots of laundry detergent).
Berry, one of 105 volunteers, called it a “magical day.”
Nathan Kreis — volunteer coordinator at Urban Vision and organizer of the “Back to School with Dignity Store” and the Christmas Store — said the kids, from pre-kindergarten through high school, worked all year to earn their “UV Dollars” to spend in the store by being involved in various programs.
It’s about goal setting, Kreis noted: Behavior, keeping up their grades, school attendance: “They earn the UV dollars all year long. Each has online accounts — checking and savings. They can buy with them CDs and stocks. … We even take out tax dollars just like in the real world. … We’re trying to instill the value of working for something. That’s why we call the store the ‘Back to School with Dignity Store’ and we say we’re offering them a ‘hand up not a hand out.’ ” All items in the store are donated and new.
Kries said the students involved in the Urban Vision community also are charged for programs being offered there like ballet, art and music. “That’s real life, too,” Kries said. “We feel like they’re more committed in the programs if they actually make an investment.”
Urban Vision’s mission is “to take the Gospel into the North Akron Community from Elizabeth Park to North Hill, working with the urban child and his family.” You’re invited to its annual banquet 7 p.m. Sept. 5, at Akron’s Quaker Station, with Jim Tressel as the keynote speaker. Tressel is former football coach at Ohio State University and now vice president of strategic engagement at the University of Akron. Cost is $35. For more information or a reservation, please visit www.urbanvision ministry.org.
Jewell Cardwell can be reached at 330-996-3567 or jcardwell@thebeaconjournal.com